MithLuin
Mariner
Alliance: House of Finrod Felagund
Last Visited: 24 Aug 2010
Joined: 16 Oct 1999
Posts: 8140
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Posted: Thu Jul 6, 2006 7:35 pm |
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The Gathering!!!
Well, I'm back!
I survived my trip to Toronto and back, and had a *blast* at the Gathering (thanks to my wonderful roomies  ). It was great to meet everyone, and I will probably come back tomorrow to do a write up (since it was my first moot/con).
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eilona
Ranger of the North
Alliance: Fangorn
Last Visited: 25 Oct 2007
Joined: 28 Aug 2001
Posts: 1230
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Posted: Fri Jul 7, 2006 3:40 pm |
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Glad you're back
Hey Mith;
Glad to hear you got back ok. We probably met, but don't know for sure.
Looking forward to hear about your impressions.
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MithLuin
Mariner
Alliance: House of Finrod Felagund
Last Visited: 24 Aug 2010
Joined: 16 Oct 1999
Posts: 8140
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Posted: Fri Jul 7, 2006 7:53 pm |
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MithLuin’s Gathering Report
- Part One
Thursday
was spent getting my car inspected, baking brownies, taking care of sick dogs, and finishing (erm, in one case, starting) my two costumes.
Friday morning
, I began the 10 hour drive to Toronto, which was thankfully uneventful. I arrived at the Sheraton shortly after 6, parked my car, checked in, and met my roommates:
*E*
,
Aromene
,
Wilma
, and her sisters. We then went to registration (which was a bit chaotic), and I tried to figure out what was up with the volunteers (even more so). We went to
dinner
at the hotel restaurant (Traders) where we met lots of other Gathering people. I was too tired to talk much, so I wasn’t much fun – some others seemed fairly exhausted as well. [As everyone already knows - you don't want to eat in hotel bars, because the prices are exhorbitant!] We made an early-ish night of it, and set the alarm for bright and early (7:30 AM) Saturday.
Saturday morning
I attempted to help with Registration from 8-10…but…well…I could only do so much. We didn’t even have name badges for many people, and the laminator broke (and then we ran out of sheets) so we could only make paper ones. That was a bit embarrassing. But I think everyone eventually got what they were supposed to…I hope! My roommates and I got musical seats together.
Then we had the Opening Ceremonies, which was a recreation of the Music of the Ainur. The text from the Silmarillion was read, interspersed with musical performances by Thoth (taking the part of Iluvatar) and Lingalad (taking the part of the Ainur). Artwork by Ted Nasmith, Jef Murray and others was projected throughout. It was very…unique, but well done. Thoth probably defies description. He is a very talented man, having a vocal range of (I am told) four octaves, and playing the violin ambidextrous. That alone would be impressive enough…but he also sings in a language he created himself (nah, not a Tolkien fan at all ). But where the weird part comes in is that he is a bit of an exhibitionist. He was wearing a gold loincloth, chains on his chest, and giant red feather plume. This needs to be seen to be believed.
THOTH
His street theater experience showed through in that he would play to a single member of the audience, making direct eye contact and all of that. I’m glad I wasn’t in the first row .
Lingalad is an Italian band, playing, well, I guess folk music. They had guitars, drums, flutes and something old…a hurdy-gurdy? You had to crank it. I really liked their music a lot, and was glad I got to hear more of it later!
Lingalad
I then crashed Kate’s costuming session, which she had started on time (despite Opening Ceremonies running late). So, she had to backtrack and repeat herself, but it was fun to hear about how she designed and put her outfits together.
Kate’s Costume page
Picture of Kate and friends wearing her costumes
After that, I think we grabbed lunch from the only store open in the food court (it was Canada Day), and then I went back for a session on how to make chainmail, which was really cool. For one thing, they had tons of samples (you know, basic stuff, like Frodo’s mithril shirt and a suit that protects from shark bites). These weren’t the people who worked on the movies, but they do work on movie projects.
The Ring Lord
(And yes, their company name was a clever movie tie-in )
I was hopeless at making it myself, and made a zillion mistakes, so they had to come help me with my bracelet. They didn’t have enough supplies for everyone, so another person was patiently watching me drop links every two seconds (pliers are
not
a natural extension of my hands!) In the end, I asked to borrow a pair of pliers so I could finish it overnight.
I then went to help mind the Gathering store, which was selling t-shirts, mugs and some fanart. I didn’t do much other than chat with people and help pack it up….and that was about it for my volunteer contributions. Well, I tried, but I’m not very good at just jumping in and doing what needs to be done. I definitely need to be told….
I probably could have caught at least part of the last panel after that, but I ended up just helping some people get ready for the picnic, and then going back to my room and farewelling my roommates (who were going). I was not, since I hadn’t bought a ticket. So, after they left (~ 5:30), I took my not-quite-half-finished chainmail bracelet and went down to the lobby. I sat down near some people who were part of the Gathering, and just started working on it. Eventually, I introduced myself, and they invited me to join them for dinner (there were 2 or 3 of them when I sat down, but there were really 8 people they were waiting for). Since that was my entire purpose in haunting the lobby, I gladly accepted . On the way to dinner, someone remarked that there were 9 of us…so I think we became the 9 Walkers. We went to an Irish pub (
Fionn McCool’s
), and the first guy to order a drink asked for “Cuthalion” and then explained to the puzzled waitress that this meant Strongbow….to our credit, we all groaned, and then agreed we couldn’t top that. I discovered that these people hang out at the
Reading Room
on TORN, or something like that. The only screennames I picked up were
N.E. Brigand
(who is an obsessive compulsive note-taker) and
Saelind
, though I later learned that one of the two professors in attendance was Mike Foster. I probably would have liked to have known that
before
I tried to explain to him what slash was, oops…  They were mostly involved in a dictionary project, and were familiar with TORc’s Annotation Project. For the record, they said we should continue it . Also, some interest in
Voronwe’s sources of the published Silm project
. Someone at the bar ordered Kamikaze shots for everyone, in honor of Canada Day. They tasted like cough syrup (which I am now in dire need of).
After dinner, we walked back to the hotel, where I met up with my roommates, who were coming back from
the rained-out picnic
(the only hour it rained all weekend was then!) But, Lingalad did an impromptu concert back at the hotel, so I went to that. Kate incited dancing, so a lot of people eventually joined in.
Picture
And another
At some point,
Rune
,
Elsha
and
Aglanor
showed up, and I got to meet them (well, I’d met
Rune
last fall). Oh, I forgot to mention that I’d met
Sunsilver
earlier that day – she is just as thoughtful in real life as you would guess! I can’t remember when
Enchie
was first introduced to me, but she was also around  We hung out in the room, (I finished my bracelet) and then went to sleep (again, not too late – maybe midnight or 1).
Pic of us all in the hotel room
Group shot
from the Picnic
And with some more people
Sunday morning
I managed to get up early (for the last time ) to go to church with
Saelind
and
Alouzon
at
St. Michael’s
. It was nice, but no music, because it was the early service – 8 AM! It was also a brand new pastor, so I think it was his first week there . I got a muffin and orange juice at a Tim Horton’s, which is a lot like Dunkin Donuts.
Back to the Con, for the latter half of the
Born of Hope
fan movie presentation, including the trailer (there is no actual movie yet). It looks
really
good, and focuses on the story of Aragorn’s parents. But, shhhh, nobody mention it’s existence to Tolkien Enterprises….
Then I went to Marcel Bülles’ talk on WWI. Basically, he was explaining that there is no evidence that Tolkien ever fought (ie, saw action) during his time in the military, nor any symptoms of shell shock afterwards, since he went on to live a fairly normal, healthy life. He maintained that the formative experience of loss and death (which runs through his works) was much earlier, and had to do with his parents’ deaths (he was 3 and 12) and moving around so much. He held that the Council of London was more important to bringing out JRRT's poetic streak than the subsequent war. Marcel is a German historian, so his approach to WWI might be a bit different than the British approach. It was interesting, and of course he recommended John Garth’s book.
Marcel with Ed, Anthony, and Jessica (the organizers of the Gathering)
And then….the Musical! I met up with my roommates, and we walked over to the Princess of Wales Theater on King St. I grabbed a quick sandwich on the go, and was suckered into buying a ridiculously over-priced keychain at the theater. But…the musical was AWESOME!!! I highly recommend it. It maybe didn’t draw me in right away, but I found myself very forgiving of their version of the story. I seemed to accept naturally that this was 1200 pages in 3.5 hours. The prologue retold the story of the hobbit…and I guess that set the scene well. The hobbits themselves were amusing, simple folk. I really liked the intricate moving stage, and the costumes. Some things, like Sam’s bit of earth from Galadriel’s orchard, were preserved, while others, like the battle of the Pelennor and the characters of Eomer and Faramir, vanished. I really liked Galadriel’s “I sang of leaves of gold” song, and Frodo and Sam singing about being in a tale “ever and always” on the stairs. Gollum was just WOW!! You have to see him, but it is very, very impressive…as are the Black Riders coming through the walls at Bree. Brrr! I just laughed at the Balrog, though, but I really did like the set up for him. In many cases, the musical seemed that it was going to make the same deviations as the movie, but then didn’t – so that was refreshing. For more of my jumbled musical comments, see my post
HERE
.
Afterwards, I waited around for our group to regroup, and one of the girls figured out that you could meet the actors back stage. So, we went behind the theater, and lo and behold, there they were!
HERE
is: me (on the far left), Aragorn (on the far right), and Gimli (in the middle). The other guy (to the left of Gimli) is a hobbit.
If you look carefully, you can see my completed chainmail bracelet .
Aromene
and I went back to the hotel to catch Ted Nasmith’s slide show of his art, while the others went out to dinner. At the end, he showed his car pictures . Then, he offered to do autographs, so I raced back to my room, grabbed my illustrated Silm I’d brought with me, and brought it down for him to sign. Basically, I think that is
really
cool, because this is the copy of the Silm that I first read in high school, and is therefore very special to me. *squee* He is a very nice guy, and showed up at our party later that night – but rather reserved.
Pic
: 2 of my roomies with Ted Nasmith
Ted Nasmith's Tolkien art
Then, the final panel of the day was an interview with Mark Colin Havard, the second child of Dr. Robert Havard, aka Humphry, aka the Useless Quack, aka the Red Admiral – one of the Inklings! Colin had gone to several meetings of the Inklings in the Bird and Baby, so that was pretty cool. He had some neat stories about his dad and C. S. Lewis. Notably, that Warnie Lewis was kind and welcoming to him (the shy 17-19 year old hanging out with these intimidating professors!), that Lewis enjoyed playing provocateur (I think that was the word he and Foster used), and on one instance, started off by stating that he didn't see what was so wrong about suicide (just to get JRRT riled up and the conversation going). In other words, Lewis enjoyed arguing, and not necessarily just what he believed. He remarked on Lewis' booming voice and JRRT's mumbling (as well as jumping from topic to topic and losing this particular uninitiated listener!) His father, Dr. Havard, was the witness of Lewis' civil marriage to Joy (strictly to keep her from being deported). Apparently, Lewis had to leave directly afterwards, so Dr. Havard took the bride out to lunch . Also, he confided in his son that Lewis was a terrible hypochondriac .
M. Colin Havard
Then it was back to the Lobby to meet up with people again, this time with the addition of
The White Tree
! So, I got to talk to him a bit about the musical, but I kept slurring my speech (talking too fast ) so I had to repeat myself to be understood . Poor guy is quite patient . Eventually we moved back to the room, and then I changed into my generic Ranger gear to attend the costumers’ room party. I left off the quilted leather vest, because I’m not that insane – it would have been way too hot!
Wilma
was brave enough to go with me. I think the password to get in was “Speak friend and enter”
Pic of me at the room party
TBC
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Last edited by MithLuin on Wed Jul 12, 2006 10:59 am; edited 7 times in total |
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MithLuin
Mariner
Alliance: House of Finrod Felagund
Last Visited: 24 Aug 2010
Joined: 16 Oct 1999
Posts: 8140
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Posted: Sat Jul 8, 2006 10:08 am |
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MithLuin’s Gathering Report
– Part 2
The Room Party
(Yes, Kate is wearing a different outfit - her room was across the hall, so she could change )
You can fit a surprising number of people into a hotel room…I think we had about 20 there. They had snacks and drinks – including Ginger Beer (which makes Ginger Ale taste like water!) and MEAD! So, I had a small glass of that, very yummy and sweet. They also had the complete soundrack, which they put on, with some roleplaying by Gandalf and Frodo. We all burst out laughing when
Aragorn
chimed in with “Fireworks, Gandalf, fireworks!” in a falsetto.
Some of them in costume at the Picnic
By this time the party was getting rather warm, rather noisy, and rather crowded…so we got the brilliant idea to move it down to one of the con rooms. Which we did
The music, food and drink followed, but now (in Essex Ballroom) we had tables and chairs, and microphones.
I was
most
impressed, though, by
Gunnar
, who managed to prove himself the world’s most generous guy ever – he showed up with copious amounts of wonderfully good chocolate for everyone! He also had some very nice liqueurs and brandys available, but I didn’t try them. I ate tons of chocolate, though!
Pic of world's nicest man
We danced to some of the Party music from the soundtrack, and then someone put on the Musical music. But eventually, it turned into open mic, so we got to see how everyone could sing – quite beautifully.
Ted Nasmith stopped by, and mentioned that he ‘scares easily’ so he just sat in the back quietly.
Thoth also joined us, but he was now dressed in
a leather vest and mini-kilt
. (That pic was from the bar, earlier that evening). He closed out the party with a performance (the vest came off, so you could actually see all his muscles moving while he was playing the violin – kinda neat) He had Kate sing a duet with him, and I must say she has a lovely voice (and is quite good at improv!) He also did this thing where he had you write with both hands at once – pretty interesting, though my left hand was illegible . He gave hugs all around, and
Wilma
and I were in agreement that that was best if we were all standing up at the time….
We went back to the room and met
*E*
who had just gotten in, and went into the hall and talked girl-stuff til like 4:45 AM .
Not surprisingly, I slept in on
Monday morning
– very late! I had really wanted to go to Judy’s costuming talk, but I decided that sleep and a shower were a greater imperative. So, I missed that, unfortunately. But
Wilma
went, and is now convinced she really can make this stuff, so that was good! Lunch in the food court again, then back for
Bruce and Craig’s first panel
. Very amusing, of course… Most of them stuck around for the sequel, but I went to see (well, hear) Ted and Bruce Nasmith and Mike Foster do a Filk of Beatles’ songs to LotR.
Very
well done! They started (and ended) with Help! (as they pointed out, they didn’t need to change many words…) Let’s see, lyrics I remember… “save me from Nazgul attack… help my finger not become Gollum’s snack…” I think my favorite was Norwegian Wood (“I once had a Ring, or should I say, it once had me…”) Yellow Submarine was a bit of a stretch, but “I Get By With a Little Help from my Friends” worked perfectly…(“Do you believe you can survive being stabbed with a spear? Yes, I’m certain that it happens all the time! Where did you get that mithril shirt? I can’t tell you, but I know it’s mine.”) I don’t even like the Beatles, and I thought it was great! Even more amusing when you consider the very real possibility that the Fab Four would have tried to make a LotR film with Stanley Kubrick as director!
I watched the documentary "Lord of the Brush" on John Howe (who couldn't be there  ) After that, we took lots of pictures in the garden, got ready for the banquet, and took lots more pictures! Some of the costumes were just amazing!
Gollum at the forbidden pool
Wilma in her blue dress
And another
Aromene
And yet another
(her costume was very popular!)
The best costume I saw – Arwen’s coronation gown
I’m not sure why we’re so serious looking here, but this is
Me, Aromene, and Enchie
(My dress was based vaguely on Anke Eissmann’s painting of Arwen’s dress in the Hall of Fire)
[
third painting down
]
Strider
Frodo and Gandalf
More great costumes
The dwarf
who ate dinner with us.
After dinner (which was delicious!) we had the costume contest – 22 great entries! I particularly liked the
female dwarf
, if only because Craig introduced her with “the dwarf snores so loud…” in his Haldir-voice (it was perfect!)
Also impressive was the
Witch
from Narnia.
I also liked
Elanor Gamgee
After the winners were announced, there was another Lingalad concert, which
I danced to
, but few others did (they hadn’t cleared away the tables from dinner).
Sleepy elves down for the count...but not really
Everyone was too tired for an actual room party, so I eventually shooed everyone into Essex again, where we sat around and talked. (The chocolate reappeared) I listened to Anthony and Jessica, and it sounds as if (if there is another Gathering), they won’t be able to help run it. So, I don’t know what Ed is going to do…
Wilma
and I stumbled back to bed at another late hour, but she then stayed up even later.
I woke up on
Tuesday
to see
Aromene
off to work – how she did that, I don’t know! We decided to watch the Prologue together so she could get her Gil-galad fix before leaving. Not counting Thoth, that was my first goodbye, and the rest of Tuesday was a long series of goodbyes. I went back to watching FotR (until after the Ford), and then back to the room to see if the others were up. The hotel had a fire alarm drill, which means an evil beeping noise went off for 10 min. Eventually, I went back down (around Moria) and watched the rest of it. The fun part of watching the movies there was that we cheered every time a new character appeared – well, and booed Peter Jackson at Haldir’s death. At some point in there, I checked out of the hotel, and dumped all my stuff in their baggage check. After FotR finished, I went to lunch with
Wilma
and
Sunsilver
at the Market (pronounced Mar-SHAY for some reason). It poured down rain for about 5 min. on the way there, but we hid in safety. The food was very good, and we got back just in time for the beginning of TTT. By now, I had figured out that I wasn’t really safe to drive home…or anywhere. No sleep in 2 days is not good for me… So, I found someone willing to take me in for the night. Sometime that afternoon,
Sunsilver
called
Lidless
and
Estel
, so I got to say hi to them – but I was so tired, I had trouble explaining that
Rune
and
elsha
had driven up from PA – I said “drew” or something…yeah, a bit out of it.
Wilma
’s sisters left with their luggage, but she stuck around for the RotK (well, most of it).
*E*
,
Rune
,
elsha
and
Aglanor
came by before dinner, and promised (after some arm-twisting in the form of brownies) to come back later. So I didn’t have to say goodbye to them yet. I saw Bruce and Craig in the lobby, and offered them my brownies – I think they took them just to be polite, but oh well .
Wilma
had to leave before the Starry Mantle, to catch the last train home, and I said goodbye to the others after the movie. It was very sad! They had an auction to raise some much-needed funds for the Gathering, but I didn’t bid on anything. Finally, at 2 AM, I went to sleep.
Wed
I woke up, packed up, said goodbye to my new roommates, and then rescued my car from the parking garage (poor thing). I crossed the border at Niagara Falls, and then called a friend in Ithaca to ask if I could crash there for the night. She and her husband had just gotten back from a three week trip, but they agreed (such good sports). So, I got to bore them to tears with my Gathering stories, and they got to show me their impressive portfolio of pictures from Reno, Yosemite, Yellowstone, the Badlands, etc. I showed off my bracelet and my signed book (and my costumes, though I didn’t put them on).
Then finally on
Thursday
I drove home, in time for dinner
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Wilma
Ranger of the North
Alliance: Servant to Luthien
Last Visited: 06 Apr 2007
Joined: 20 Aug 2003
Posts: 1249
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Gil-Estel
Rider of the Mark
Alliance: House of Earendil
Last Visited: 25 Jan 2009
Joined: 08 Apr 2003
Posts: 608
Location: Vingilot
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Posted: Tue Jul 18, 2006 7:34 pm |
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Thanks, for posting the photos. I only took 2 (and not digital, I'm afraid).
I am pleased to announce that the final total for the ProLiteracy auction was over $1900!
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Harvestar
Mariner
Alliance: -None - Female-
Last Visited: 09 Apr 2010
Joined: 11 Jul 2001
Posts: 8344
Location: Beyond the Milky Way
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Posted: Tue Jul 18, 2006 9:50 pm |
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Thanks so much for posting pictures and stories about the Gathering! I so wish I could have gone this year, but it was not to be. sigh...
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MithLuin
Mariner
Alliance: House of Finrod Felagund
Last Visited: 24 Aug 2010
Joined: 16 Oct 1999
Posts: 8140
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Posted: Wed Jul 19, 2006 12:57 pm |
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pics!
Pictures from the Gathering:
That's a lot of pictures! Some albums only have 15, others have over 300 (yes, that means you,
*E*
! )
All of these people posted links to their photo albums on the web, and said they were for everyone to share (so long as you credit the source). So, I hope it is okay that I have reposted the links here.... Note:
NONE
of these pictures were mine; I didn't have a camera (not that that mattered, apparently...)
There are also several lovely writeups available, and I'd be happy to post links to those, if anyone is interested...
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Last edited by MithLuin on Tue Aug 1, 2006 9:54 am; edited 1 time in total |
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Sunsilver
Ranger of the North
Alliance: Rohan
Last Visited: 15 Aug 2010
Joined: 12 Apr 2000
Posts: 2376
Location: Canada
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Posted: Mon Jul 24, 2006 6:40 am |
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Great writeup, Mith! My photos are
HERE
One oddity of photobucket is that it posts photos to an existing album in reverse order, so hit the PREVIOUS button to see the rest of the photos...unless you're interested in my rose garden...oh, and there's that PRICELESS pic by Rodia of Gimli in his pink speedo! 
Here's my costume:
Sunny and Wilma
And another shot, with the lovely Enchantress:
Sunsilver and Enchie
Group photo:
Sunny, Wilma, Davia, Grace, Enchie, *E*. Front row: Aromene, MithLuin
Oh yea, in case you can't read the message on the GOTF messageboard, it says:
LOST: One Ring
If found, return to Sauron
Barad-dur
Mordor.
Answers to: "My preciousss!"
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Amrunelen
Mariner
Alliance: Servant to Galadriel
Last Visited: 19 Apr 2010
Joined: 24 Feb 2003
Posts: 7778
Location: PA, US of A
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Posted: Fri Aug 4, 2006 6:56 pm |
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Hee!! There's Elsha, Aggie, and I in Radagast's pictures at the movies which we randomly wandered into. 
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*E*V*E*N*S*T*A*R*
Mariner
Alliance: Servant to Luthien
Last Visited: 28 Jun 2008
Joined: 30 Mar 2002
Posts: 8678
Location: New Brunswick, Canada
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Posted: Mon Aug 7, 2006 7:04 am |
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I wondered if you guys would notice that. I did post all the photo accounts I had found at one point on board77, specifically noting that some of y'all made guest appearances in albums other than those of our main group, but you never know when people actually check up on that.
I actually just found myself in the background of one stranger's photo. Really didn't show up anywhere else, probably because I only wore my cloak for a few hours on the Sunday and my costume at the banquet. Costumes are more exciting than us normal slobs, so I understand.
*E*
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MithLuin
Mariner
Alliance: House of Finrod Felagund
Last Visited: 24 Aug 2010
Joined: 16 Oct 1999
Posts: 8140
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*E*V*E*N*S*T*A*R*
Mariner
Alliance: Servant to Luthien
Last Visited: 28 Jun 2008
Joined: 30 Mar 2002
Posts: 8678
Location: New Brunswick, Canada
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Posted: Wed Aug 9, 2006 4:06 am |
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DP. 
*E*
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